Morning After Dawn
by VickyZeroKitty
Summary: Sam struggles with coping with events after the night on Mt. Washington. Canon deaths: Jess and Matt. SamxMike.
1. Chapter 1

_BOOM!_

Sam landed with a thud, the air being knocked out of her lungs. She still felt the intense heat from the explosions as the scent of singed hair lingered in her nose.

It took her a moment to manage sitting up. Her heart was racing and she felt a haziness swamp her mind. She placed her head in-between her knees for a moment to try and recover, remembering something about doing that after feeling faint or something. It helped, but only for a moment.

She looked up and saw the once glorious Washington lodge engulfed in flames. Burning brightly, the sky colored in hues of pink, purple, and orange didn't even come close in compare to the flames that licked the air around the blackened structure of wood and glass. The roar of helicopter rotor blades could be heard in the distance.

Sam instantly stood, her mind racing. The sound of distorted screaming pierced her ears, and she could've sworn she saw what looked like some ghastly ball of flame emerge from the fire and shoot straight for her.

She stumbled a bit, afraid what she thought she saw, but was caught by the arm from someone beside her. She looked to her side and saw Mike. His face was a mask of mixed emotion that she couldn't read. He held firmly onto her arm as he pulled her back and away from the burning lodge. She pried her eyes away from him and back to what was left of the hell forsaken vacation home of the Washingtons.

* * *

"You need to listen to me."

Her voice was cold and steely.

"I don't care if you believe me or not. Doesn't matter. Because you will."

She looked as if she had been through hell and back.

"You need to go down to the mines."

She looked at nothing in particular except her own refection in the one-way mirror. She leaned back on the rough, brick wall behind her. She fidgeted a bit, unable to keep still. She knew she must've seemed crazy, but what other choice did she have?

There was a few seconds of silence before she heard the voice of the interviewer through an intercom.

"What's in the mines, Sam?"

A wry smile made it's way on her face. They were so naïve to everything she and her friends had been through and what lurked on that mountain.

"I've seen what's down there…"

She shook her head lightly as she felt her heart's pace speed up a little at the memories that tried to make their way back into her mind.

"…And I'd given anything to unsee it…"

Sam swallowed hard. She saw her reflection staring back at her and it looked tired and desperate. She was drained of color and her eyes were lackluster.

She was drained of all emotions.

* * *

The police had escorted her out of the interviewing block and to the private waiting room where her other friends who had already finish their interviews were supposedly waiting. When she had walking through the door, she had only taken a moment to look around the small room. Despite its size, her friends had all managed to separate themselves from each other around the room.

Chris and Ashley were the only ones sitting next to each other. They sat at a table together. Ashley had her head resting in her arms on the table with a pale colored blanket around her and Chris had one arm around her shoulders as he, too, rested his head on the table with his other arm. Sam would've thought they were asleep had it not been for them slightly adjusting to see who had enter the room.

Emily sat on top of counter along the right side of the room with a steaming foam cup in one of her hands. She had her legs crossed and was staring at Sam as soon as she entered, as if waiting. Her eyes were dark and fierce, as if a storm was brewing somewhere behind them.

Mike stood leaning against the wall across from Emily. He had his arms crossed and his foot tapped impatiently on the ground. He still looked pretty beat up, but he had couple of bandages here and there.

"Is there anything we can get for you? A blanket? Maybe some coffee?" One of the officers standing behind Sam asked.

Sam looked down at the floor and merely shook her head, turning down the offers.

The officer shrugged, "alright, then. We'll need you to call someone to come pick you up."

Sam was silent for a moment. She shook her head again slowly.

"We'll give you a couple of minutes, but you'll have to call someone eventually. All of your friends already have. We'll explain to your parents what happens after they arrive at the police station and have you all sign some forms," the office explained.

Sam gave a small nod, not saying a single word before turning and walking off to one corner of the room away from everybody else. She sat on the floor and rested her arms on top of her knees. She felt someone staring at her and saw that it was Chris and Ashley. They both looked worried and sad. Ashley opened her mouth as if to say something, but quickly closed it. Sam frowned and looked away. She buried her head in her arms.

* * *

About an hour and a half had passed when everybody started leaving. Sam never lifted her head up, but she heard when the officer would come in and announce whose parents had arrived and the shuffle of footsteps when one of her friends left.

Emily was the first to go.

She gave a loud sigh of relief.

"Finally!" she said exuberantly as she hopped off the counter and rushed over to the officers.

Ashley was next to go followed shortly afterwards by Chris.

After an officer had told Ashley that her mother had come for her, she had walked over to Sam and laid the blanket she had over her. She gave Sam's hand a light squeeze before leaving, though Sam had not responded back at all.

Chris had sat close beside Sam for a bit after Ashley had left. He hugged her small bundled up figure tightly, border lining painfully, before leaving when they had called for him after Ashley.

Mike was the last to go. His father had arrived for him. Sam was a bit surprised when he didn't leave as soon as they called for him.

He hesitated.

"Sam?" he spoke softly after a few seconds had passed.

Like with Ashley and Chris, Sam didn't respond in the least bit.

Mike sighed and after another few seconds, she heard the sound of his footsteps.

She was the only one left.

It didn't take long for the officer that had previously asked her to make a phone call to come back into the waiting room.

"You've denied making a phone to anyone every time. I'm gonna have to ask you to make a phone again otherwise we'll be forced to call you a cab," the officer said with a stern tone in his voice.

Sam looked up at him; it was the first time she had moved since she had entered the room. Her eyes were red and she looked exhausted.

" I don't have anyone to call," she croaked as she tried to wet her lips, but her mouth was dry.

"What about your parents? I'm sure they're worried sick about-"

" They're live on the other side of the country," she cut in before the officer could finish.

He gave her a perplexed look before continuing on, "Any other relatives in the area?"

Sam shook her head and looked to the ground again.

"Whom have you been staying with then?"

"I live on my own. I moved to Los Angeles to come to the university," Sam explained curtly.

The officer gave a brief sigh.

"Then, we'll have to call you a cab…" he concluded.

"I don't have any money on me. All the stuff I took with me on the mountain stayed in the lodge when it burnt down," Sam was the one to sigh this time," that includes my phone and wallet."

"I guess I'll have to be the one who takes you home. Come on, let's go fill out that paperwork," the officer shook his head.

She looked up at him again. He smiled to her trying to lighten the situation. He outstretched his hand toward her to help her up. Sam accepted it and he lifted her off the floor. Her legs and neck ached from sitting in the same position for so long. The blanket that Ashley had given her had slide off her back and onto the floor. She bent down to retrieve it and handed it over to the officer before heading toward the door. The officer walked beside her and patted her shoulder with his heavy hand.

"Don't worry, kid. Everything will be alright."


	2. Chapter 2

"Take a left here."

The cop did as Sam had told him to.

"Those apartments over there," Sam said nonchalantly. She had her head leaning on the police car's passenger window. She was tired and thoughts of the night before kept trying to enter her head. She would try to push them aside, but they still infiltrated the barrier she had attempted put up. She closed her eyes.

God…

The thoughts…

They were horrible.

The images of the Wendigos, of Hannah, even of Josh, appeared as clear as day. She cracked open her eyes again. She thought of her missing friends.

They were still up there, somewhere. Whether they were alive or not, none of them knew. Not even the cops knew of their faiths, yet. She couldn't even fathom the thought of being on that mountain for another night, either dead or alive.

"You know…" the cop started slowly, interrupting Sam's thought, "I've seen therapy really help some victims that come through our system."

"I already told you I'm fine," Sam replied rather abruptly. She really didn't feel like talking anymore.

"Some of the people who've come to us for help have been through some pretty traumatic things and have made splendid recoveries. Even your friends have already booked a session each back when we were at the station," the cop tried to cox Sam. The poor girl looked pretty traumatized in his opinion, and he was only trying to help. He spared a glance her way while they were stopped at a red light. She continued to look out the car window. She wore a slightly agitated expression, but did not say a word.

The light turned green and the cop decided not to push it any further when she never responded.

The police car drove through the gates of the apartment complex Sam had directed him to.

Sam quickly opened the car door and stepped out. She was surprised when the cop had also open his door and stepped foot outside the car.

"I think it would be best for me to accompany you inside," he said directing toward her clothes. They were the same clothes she had been wearing when her and friends were rescued from the lodge.

She looked down at herself.

She had to agree. Bloodstained clothes wouldn't be easy to explain when she would have to ask the front desk for a new key to her room.

* * *

Sam entered her apartment. It was a small one bedroom, but for the price she had to pay for it every month, she had felt it should've been at least three times bigger, but it was her home and it had been for a little over a year already.

Relief washed over her. It was like the weight of everything that had happened had dissipated for a brief moment. Her body felt like stone as she looked around the dimly lit room of her walk-in living room, her eyes taking it all in. It was almost unbelievable after everything that had happened.

She didn't know how, but somehow she ended up on the couch.

Lying face down, she took a deep breath, welcoming the familiar scents of her home. She had only been gone from it for about two days, but it had felt like it had been so much longer.

The scent of her apple-cinnamon candles from the bar separating the kitchen from the living room was what really hit her. Something about it was so comforting; it helped her wash out the strong, coppery smell of blood, smoke, and the earthiness of dirt that had been following her since the whole incident.

Sam tried to move, but her body didn't listen to her. Her eyes felt heavy and she didn't resist when they fell close. She didn't put up much of a fight when sleep had called her name.

* * *

" _Sam?" a familiar voice called her name._

 _She was running._

 _As fast as her legs could carry her._

 _She ran for her life._

" _Sam! Please! Is that you?"_

 _Sam didn't stop. She was in dark forest of the mountains again and something was chasing her. She could hear the pounding of feet and the crunching of breaking branches._

" _Help me! Oh my god! Please, Sam, help me!" the voice cried out. She had never heard anything more dreadful._

 _Sam felt hot tears slid down her face as she leapt over a fallen tree, missing the landing in the slippery snow and ice, and stumbling down the steeping slope. She forced herself to get up as fast as physically possible and continued her flight._

" _Why? Why are you just leaving me here?! Please, Sam, don't leave me here! I don't want to die!"_

 _She messed up. She messed up bad._

 _What ever was pursing her was right behind her now. She knew it._

 _Her lungs burned as the cold, crisp air chilled her entire being, biting and nipping at her exposed face. The drying tears streaks frosted over._

" _I'm so cold…" the voice sound hoarse and weak this time._

" _I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry," Sam whispered repeatedly like a mantra._

 _It became harder to keep pushing forward. Her body was giving out on her as she began to slow down. Her feet struggled to carry her forward as the amount of soft snow she had to trudge through increased._

 _The voice had stopped, but the sound of breaking branches and rustling leaves had become more apparent._

 _Sam stopped. She couldn't go on. It was impossible. She stood for a second, breathing hard before falling to her knees. She looked to the night sky above her through window of twisted, almost bear branches of the surrounding trees._

 _She could see the glimmer of the distant stars and the puffs of smoke from her hot, labored breathing. Everything was silent._

 _There was no noise at all aside her hard breathing. It was almost peaceful, the cold and the mess of stars hanging in the inky, black sky._

 _She simply watched them through her hot tears. She gave up. She couldn't run anymore._

" _Why did you leave me here?" the voice returned, but it almost a whisper this time._

" _I-..I-I'm," Sam choked on her words._

" _Why did you let this happen?"_

"… _sorry…" Sam breathed out shakily. She tried to swallow, but her throat was tight._

 _There was a small hissing sound and Sam slowly allowed her head to move to look directly in front of her._

 _It was a Wendigo._

 _Twisted, gnarled teeth shining a pale yellow in the darkness, its milky eyes were locked with hers. Its sickly skin stuck onto its body's every features, not allowing space between it and its frame. The smell it emitted was gut wrenching._

 _Sam cringed at the thing. It was putrid and unearthly._

" _You were my best friend…" the creature spoke and it was then that Sam remembered the origins of the voice._

" _WHY?! I TRUSTED YOU! HOW COULD YOU LET THIS HAPPEN?!"_

" _Hannah, I'm so sorry," Sam's whisper was almost inaudible._

" _YOU NEVER EVEN TRIED TO FIND ME! THIS WAS YOUR FAULT!" the creature yelled as it grabbed Sam by the throat and lifted her into the air._

 _Sam gripped the creature's cold, clammy hand as it held her throat with steadfast strength. Sam could feel the pounding pulse of her veins as they desperately seek for circulation. She kicked her legs aimlessly and gasped for air._

 _A piercing pain shot through Sam's body as Hannah drove her hand completely through Sam's stomach._

Sam woke with a start. She was breathing heavily and a cold sweat left her body freezing. She frantically searched her environment; slowly remembering she was in the safety of her own home.

Her heart was pounding as she sat down properly on her couch. She ran a hand through her dirty, blonde locks. Tears welled up in her eyes and she shook her head. Slowly the feeling of fear faded and was replaced by a heavy wave of remorse as the dream and memories cycled through her head. She wept in the darkness of her silent home.

It took her a moment to recollect herself.

She got up and looked to the digital clock in her living room, distress plaguing her body and mind.

It read 4:17am.

She couldn't go back to sleep. There was no way.

Bringing a hand to her temple, she paced a moment before she went to the bathroom to take a shower.


	3. Chapter 3

Morning hours passed, but not easily.

Sam sat on the couch with her legs tucked beside her. Her hair was still slightly damp and her eyes were dark and heavy. She bit at her nails as she stared blankly at the TV.

She had been reduced to watch infomercials after just about all programs and shows had ceased. She had tried to doze off on multiple occasions, but fierce memories gripped her mind and forced her awake in fear before any amount of sleep could ensue.

At first, it was difficult and frustrating to stay awake as she tried to push the reasons for her grief aside, but after 5am had swung around, it became easier to just sit there in the dark with a blank mind and watch a blue collared man preach about the quality of some kind of juicer.

Though it may have sounded silly, she couldn't deny that she took some interest in a product being displayed…

Sam jumped when she heard the sound of birds singing loudly right outside her window. Confused, she looked at the time.

6:17am.

With an exasperated sigh, she covered her face with her hands and threw her head back on the couch. She let her hands slid off of her face and to her sides in defeat as she pout at the ceiling.

She had stayed up all night on a Monday.

She was more than a little thankful that she was off from school for the winter break, but she still had work to attend later. She didn't feel tired anymore, but her mind felt a bit foggy and not as sharp as it could be.

She let her head roll to the direction of the kitchen. The burning candle sitting on the bar flickered a bit and threw odd shadows over the metallic surfaces within the kitchen. She had never really been one for coffee, but maybe now wouldn't have been a bad time to acquire a taste for the bitter drink.

Sam peeled herself off the couch and stretch with a loud groan before slowly shuffling into the kitchen.

* * *

It didn't take long before the strong aroma filled the small apartment from the coffee Sam had managed to brew up.

She stood leaning against the bar as she flipped through the different channels, trying to find something to watch now that the stations had been resurrected from late night infomercial hell.

She brought the steaming cup of coffee to her lips and took a small sip, grimacing as she moved it away. No matter the amount of sugar and creamer she added, it still had peculiar aftertaste.

"I guess this just isn't my cup of Joe," she whispered with a small smile at her own joke.

She laughed and shook at her heard when she realized how bad her pun actually was. She directed her attention back to the TV and stopped when she landed on the news channel.

She watched as the weatherman gave the forecast for the week, taking another small sip from her mug.

A knock sounded from her door.

Sam looked over her shoulder and wondered who it could be. Setting down her cup on the bar, she went to answer the door.

"Emily?" Sam asked with a puzzled look.

Emily stood before her, disheveled and exhausted.

"Sam!" Emily practically shouted as she came up to her, "Sam, I'm so sorry to bother you this early, but I didn't know who else to talk to."

Sam didn't get the chance to say anything before Emily babbled on.

"I was gonna talk to Mike at first, but he held a gun to my face, that bastard! I can't talk to him! Ashley tried to cheer him on, so of course she's out of the picture, and you know Chris is on her side now that they're a thing! Jessica and Matt are still missing! I've called the police station, like, twenty times since we left and they still haven't found them! Oh my god! What if they don't find him! What if Matt's still on that mountain with those-those monsters?! I- I didn't know who else to turn to-"

That was where Sam cut her off.

"Em! It's alright! Just-… slow down," Sam said with a concerned expression she held up her hands in defense. She was going way too fast for Sam to process so early in the morning with no sleep.

Emily began to cry as she brought fisted hands to cover her reddened face.

Sam was taken aback. All of this was so sudden and she didn't know how to process any of it. She watched with a breaking heart as Emily cried in front of her. Though the two had never really been close, she still considered the girl her friend. Sam was never particularly fond of Emily in any way, especially after the prank they had pulled a year back, and only really talked to her through association with Hannah, but the display in front of her was too much.

Sam gently hugged the sobbing girl, careful of the wound on her shoulder, as she calmed down.

"Do you want to come inside and talk about it?" Sam asked in a gentle voice and let go of Emily when she felt her nod in agreement.

* * *

Emily sat on the couch and blew her nose into the napkin Sam had handed her.

Sam stood in the kitchen, preparing another cup of coffee for Emily.

Questioned formed in her mind, but she let them be unspoken. She looked over her shoulder for a quick glance at Emily. She turned her attention away after a second. She didn't even know that Emily knew where she lived.

After mixing in what she thought was a fair amount of sugar and creamer, Sam went to sit on the couch beside Emily. She handed her the hot cup to which Emily took an immediate sip from.

"Ugh, you made it really sweet," Emily complained weakly with a stuffy nose.

A faux smile made its way onto Sam face as she tried to laugh it off. "Sorry, I'm not much of a coffee person."

Sam gave Emily a moment before she spoke up again, careful to try and not upset her.

"So what happened?"

Emily looked down, her puffy red eyes looking down into the pool of dark coffee in her cup. Sam looked at her with pity and noticed the bags under her eyes and the remains of smeared makeup.

"I kept having nightmares last night," Emily admitted," I couldn't stop thinking about everything."

Sam frowned.

"When I called the police station to ask about Matt, they just said that I shouldn't worry and that they would send out a search team in the morning. Matt…Matt didn't deserve this! He didn't deserve to be eaten by those monsters!" Emily had begun to cry again.

"We aren't sure him and Jess are-" Sam tried to interrupt, but Emily continued as if Sam hadn't said a single word.

"Me and him- we had a fight on the radio tower, but he still tried to save me! He wasn't going to leave me there! The way he yelled my name when it had collapsed… He cared about me a whole hell of a lot more than Mike! Mike tried to kill me! We had a thing; I thought we still had a thing! He tried to kill me! I literally had a gun inches away from my face and that bastard was going to pull the trigger!"

"Mike was just-" Sam tried to edge in again unsuccessfully as Emily became more upset and her heated rant became more vigorous.

"Ashley wanted me dead as much as Mike did! I never even did anything to her and that little bitch encouraged him! What?! To save her own ass?" Emily scoffed, "I wonder if she would've done the same if it was Chris! And you know what the best part about all this is?! Not a single person has texted or called me since all of this happened to even apologize!"

For as much as Sam wanted to say something to defend her other friends, she decided to stay quiet until Emily was done.

Emily blew her nose.

"I just wouldn't have thought that the people I considered my friends would be so quick to go and kill me. Not only that, but it would have been for nothing," she shook her head, "I wish I had never went back to that mountain. Beth…Hannah…. I really, really hope they find Matt soon… dead or alive. For as bad as this might sound, either would be good at this point, I think."

Emily looked Sam as if expecting some kind of reassurance about what she said from the blonde.

Sam wasn't quite sure how to answer. She opened her mouth to say something, but her response was a bit hesitant.

"Matt's a strong and smart guy. I'm sure he is fine," she said, not quite sure if that was a good response to give.

"Do you really think so?" Emily asked with hopefulness.

"Yeah," Sam lied, though she couldn't hold Emily's gaze.

Emily stayed quiet a moment, her eyes trailing away from Sam.

" How are you okay after everything that happened?"

Sam was caught off guard by the question, but tried to play it off.

"Well, for one, I didn't have a gun pointed at me."

"Yeah, but even at that..."

"What do you mean?"

Emily looked back to her with a strange expression before shaking her head.

"Nevermind," Emily said offhandedly.

Sam was going to persist, but thought it best to just let it go.

* * *

Emily had stayed for a while to talk before deciding to leave. Sam had sat patiently and listened to her vent the whole time, cringing slightly when Emily had went into detail about what she had experienced on the mountain.

Sam picked up the napkins and cup Emily had left behind and thought about everything they had talked about. Though there were a lot of things that Sam didn't agree with Emily about, she knew it was only a difference of opinions.

She sighed. Though Emily had seemed better by the end of their session, Sam felt as if she was worse off. More details and information she didn't need filled her head and further implanted itself in her mind.

She took a minute to hover over the sink in her kitchen to settle her mind and rest her weary eyes.

She turned on the faucet and splashed cool water on her face, waking her up.

She dried her face, considering calling into work.

She paused mid-motion.

"Oh yeah, that's right. I don't have a phone," Sam said aloud with discontent.

She pursed her lips for a moment before shaking her head and going off to her room to change.

* * *

 **A/N: I just wanted to say thank you to all the people following, favoriting, reviewing, or even just reading my story. I know it's a bit slow paced, but I hope that y'all can bear with me! For the Guest who reviewed my story and asked when I will update, I will update most likely on either Saturdays, Sundays, or Tuesdays since those are the days that I don't have classes and can work on them if I'm not too busy with work or other things. I've been struggling with allergies and a busy work schedule recently, but I've managed to create another chapter. If I've made mistakes, I'm sorry and will look back at this chapter when I get the chance. Regardless, I hope y'all enjoyed it!**


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